We Asked The Experts: What Health Tech Trends Will Shape 2024?

We’ve collected industry expert predictions on trends that will shape health tech in 2024.

The healthcare sector must continually evolve to effectively address the challenges it faces. As such, it is unsurprising that it has consistently embraced new technological innovations to mature and strengthen its operations. And, as we approach 2024, the health tech industry is poised to maintain its forward momentum.

We asked a panel of industry experts to give their predictions on what trends they think will shape health tech next year…

Our Experts

• Ahmed Ejaz – Optometrist, Founder and CEO at Cambridge Spectacle Co.
• Dr Anas Nader – Co-founder and CEO of Patchwork Health
• Amanda Philpott – Co-founder and CEO of eargym
• Dr Owain Rhys Hughes – Founder and CEO of Cinapsis
• Daniel Herman – SAQ coach, NASM nutritionist and Founder of Bio-Synergy
• Louise Windo – Strategy Principal at ustwo
• Billy Boyle – Founder and CEO, Owlstone Medical and OMED Health
• Stephen Critchlow – Executive Chairman of Evergreen Life
• Stephen Statler – CMO at Wiliot

Ahmed Ejaz, Optometrist, Founder and CEO at Cambridge Spectacle Co.

“The healthcare sector has already relied on technology for decades. In our sector (eyecare) we use machines and algorithms to calculate prescriptions and determine disease progression. The future will be more enhanced artificial intelligence that shall enable clinicians to further remove themselves from diagnosis and prognosis decisions.

“As well as this, the most useful aspect of technological change in healthcare is early detection of disease. This will save health services in countries across the world billions of pounds in costs. In optometry, we are investigating the detection of Alzheimer’s disease from a simple eye examination. Early management and detection will be key to better patient outcomes across a range of conditions.

“At our Opticians, we are also finding ways of improving our patient journey by implementing more innovative software solutions. Before our patients come in for eye exams, they can virtually try on spectacles they might need with augmented reality. Our online booking systems and portals can safely store patient details and allow easier access to health records. Innovations in HealthTech will continue to change and better patient outcomes and experiences for years to come.”

Dr Anas Nader, Co-founder and CEO of Patchwork Health

“Interoperability will remain a priority for healthtech leaders in 2024. Following the formal introduction of Integrated Care Systems last year, the push for truly joined-up care has become more focused than ever. Collaborative working is key to facilitating this; but if the digital systems being used by clinicians cannot effectively ‘speak’ to one another, collaboration on an ICS-wide scale becomes unachievable. To effectively support the move to more joined-up care in 2024 and beyond, health tech innovators must therefore put interoperability at the core of their offering.

“This means tech providers must factor it into design from day one, to ensure that once adopted, any digital tool can be used seamlessly alongside existing systems and processes. If healthtech providers fail to do this, they run the risk of piling additional administrative burden onto the clinicians and non-clinical teams using the tech in the NHS – which could mean it ultimately becomes too difficult for healthcare teams to use. Putting interoperability first will help innovators to avoid this fate, and ensure that digital solutions can be seamlessly integrated to deliver tangible, long-lasting impact for clinicians and their patients.”

Amanda Philpott, Co-founder and CEO of eargym

“Healthtech solutions will broaden what we consider to be crucial aspects of health and wellbeing in 2024. Health apps and wearables continue to grow in popularity and by encouraging at-home health screening they have the potential to raise awareness about a number of previously overlooked or lesser-understood health issues.

“For example, developing technology which facilitates regular hearing testing can not only improve patient outcomes by powering preventative action, but can also challenge the current perception that hearing tests are any less critical to wellbeing than visits to the dentist. The same applies for heart health – we have seen a dramatic increase in demand for cardiac monitoring apps which educate users about the importance of understanding invisible illnesses and the associated symptoms which can impact millions of people worldwide.

“With the NHS facing really significant challenges in the coming year, it will be more important than ever for leaders in healthtech to focus on raising awareness of opportunities to address earlier those important, under-recognised health conditions that have long term and serious implications for individuals and for use of resources”.

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Dr Owain Rhys Hughes, Founder and CEO of Cinapsis

“Telemedicine really took off in the pandemic, and it doesn’t show signs of slowing down anytime soon. 2024 will see the continued use and streamlining of remote treatment options to better meet the clinical needs of more patients, as well as easing the pressure on hospital capacity and staff.

“Over the next year, I believe we will see the wider uptake of solutions that promise to further the telemedicine mission, such as virtual hospital wards and remote monitoring equipment like wearables that can monitor patient data such as heart rate.”

Daniel Herman, SAQ coach, NASM nutritionist and Founder of Bio-Synergy

“DNA and epigenetic testing are poised to revolutionise fitness by offering personalised insights. DNA testing identifies genetic markers influencing muscle composition, metabolism, and injury susceptibility, tailoring exercise plans and injury prevention. It also informs optimal nutrition plans based on genetic factors. Epigenetic testing delves into how lifestyle affects gene expression, enabling customised exercise and nutrition recommendations. Both approaches aid weight management by considering genetic predispositions to obesity and metabolic factors. Additionally, understanding behavioural tendencies through genetic insights supports sustainable behaviour change.

“These technologies offer a nuanced understanding of individual responses to fitness interventions. While DNA and epigenetic testing show promise in enhancing fitness outcomes. As our understanding of genetics and epigenetics advances, these tests will revolutionise how we approach and personalise fitness strategies for individuals, making personal training, personalised.”

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Louise Windo, Strategy Principal at ustwo

Billy Boyle, Founder and CEO, Owlstone Medical and OMED Health

“Scientific breakthroughs continue to push us towards healthcare treatments that can be tailored towards an individual, and with innovation accelerating at a rapid pace, personalised healthcare will become a big theme in 2024. We’re seeing the HealthTech market tapping into personalised healthcare through remote monitoring devices, which are becoming much more widespread.

“These are devices that can help monitor physiological symptoms to provide an overall map of a patient’s health which can then be used to ensure accurate medical care, tailored to each individual. Think of activity trackers like fitbits, but for an increasing range of health issues. For example, remote breath analysis devices are being developed which can analyse the composition of exhaled breath anytime, anywhere, to provide insight into an individual’s health in real-time.

“The data gathered by monitoring breath can then enable healthcare professionals to more easily identify diseases such as gastrointestinal issues and food intolerances, and create individualised treatment plans. Crucially, remote monitoring devices empower patients to have an active role in their healthcare from the comfort of their own homes – something we’ve noticed has become more desirable since Covid-19.

“As we head into 2024, these devices will continue to drive us towards a future where healthcare can be uniquely tailored to the individual needs of each patient.”

Stephen Critchlow, Executive Chairman of Evergreen Life

“2024 will be the year that we continue to see huge advancement in how accessible AI and machine learning are for health outcomes.

 “The power of computing has increased so significantly and the cost dropped so dramatically, that it’s far easier to generate personalised data for people that enable meaningful change. Whether that’s in terms of improved diagnosis and treatment, or simply giving people advice on how to be well – an area that previously has not been researched well. People are already beginning to realise what a sustainable, healthy life is and tech will empower them to find ways to increase their number of happy, healthy years.

 “Not only can computing power be deployed in traditional anonymised, historical and health record-based research – in 2024, we intend to combine machine learning on people’s diet and lifestyle with their health records and DNA data. This will identify the specific things each individual should do to ensure they are healthy, in a way that’s personalised to them. When it comes to treatments or therapies, we will be able to say which particular drug will work best for an individual, have the least side effects and what the dosage should be. This is only possible with the computing power now available combined with a rich longitudinal record collected over many years.”

Stephen Statler, CMO at Wiliot

“Healthcare providers need better visibility of their supply chains, inventory, and operations in order to deliver the outcomes patients need. Increasing demand has put healthcare logistics under strain as populations age, creating imbalance between those who need care and the resources available to them. Ambient IoT — which refers to the integration of tiny, battery-free sensing devices into almost any object — can, for the first time, provide a complete view of a healthcare organisation’s moving parts.

“By equipping all supplies and equipment with unique secure IDs, healthcare providers gain real-time, end-to-end, item-level visibility, right down to the quantities and conditions of individual containers. This includes temperature and humidity sensing, helping manufacturers transport medicines or vaccines in ideal conditions to avoid spoilage and wastage. Reusable equipment — such as plastic bins, surgical tools, and imaging devices — can be tracked throughout sanitisation and transport, so that they can be quickly routed to where they are needed most.

“Ambient IoT collates this data into cloud platforms, which can be leveraged for real-time and historic analytics, automated compliance procedures, and predictive AI modelling. We can finally achieve the dream of truly “smart” healthcare, a concept that has until now been the domain of science fiction.”

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